Karen McKim and the problem with single-issue candidates

Karen McKim is running for Dane County Clerk because she thinks the county’s current auditing systems are dramatically subpar. That’s her primary issue, it is the first thing she brings up in every interview, in every post on Facebook. Even the lead image on her campaign’s website crosses out “County” and replaces it with “Counting,” yet another reference to auditing.

If McKim has a second issue, it is that she really, really, really doesn’t like current Dane County Clerk Scott McDonell.

Karen McKim is the public face of a citizens’ group known as the Wisconsin Election Integrity Action Team. Except, instead of focusing on elections across the state of Wisconsin, McKim’s blog posts zero in on one guy, Scott McDonell. All eight of the most recent blog posts mention Dane County elections specifically. In a state of 72 counties, she has decided to turn her organization into a personal crusade on this county and this clerk alone.

To a certain extent, I can understand the laser-like focus on Dane County. People in here do seem to care about good government. McKim’s Wisconsin Election Integrity Action Team believes that Dane County can be a model of election integrity that other counties can follow. However, I’m highly skeptical that Waukesha or Ozaukee County officials are going to ever say, “Ooh, let’s do what Dane County is doing!”

Even though I question her organization’s tactics, I still believe campaigning for increased auditing is a worthy issue. Elections technology has changed dramatically, opening up new opportunities for fraud. I also think McDonell has been dismissive of McKim’s concerns. McKim is an experienced bureaucrat with decades of experience and a healthy number of supporters; her concerns deserve a hearing.

But my concern with McKim, and with single-issue candidates in general, is that we don’t live in a single-issue world.

Imagine you could only pick one person to fix your car. (To those living on the near east side, imagine you could only pick one person to fix your bike.) You have a competent mechanic but admit that there are some things he or she could do better. A new mechanic comes along who says they’ll do a better job fixing your brakes. If you ask them about your transmission, your shocks, your battery, that crunching noise that comes on when you crank up the AC — they go back to talking about fixing your brakes.

Brakes are important, incredibly important, but they aren’t the only part of a car.

Election auditing doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It is one of many, many duties a county clerk has to perform. McDonell has had to juggle a number of issues in his single term as clerk.

Then there’s the court saga of voter ID, training and retraining poll workers on election standards that have changed almost every election. After seeing the long lines at colleges such as Marquette University and UW-Green Bay during this spring’s presidential primary, the relatively smooth and fast-moving lines at UW-Madison showed that local election officials here were better prepared than many elsewhere in the state.

Looking ahead to this election, McDonell has worked with local municipalities to ensure early voting hours in almost every municipality in Dane County. Even more promising is McDonell’s successful push to get UW-Madison to issue paper IDs at polling places on Election Day. While both are important issues, making sure no eligible voter is turned away from the polls is of greater importance to me than increased auditing.

The Dane County clerk has been involved in more than just elections. In less than four years, marriage equality moved from something that was banned by the state constitution to something that is now taken for granted. I’m glad marriage equality has so quickly become the norm, but it wasn’t long ago that issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples earned McDonell veiled threats from then-Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen.

McKim is right on her issue; the county clerk should audit more machines across the county. But thus far she has failed to make a strong case on other issues as to why she’d be a better clerk than McDonell. In the next month, she’s got to move beyond auditing if voters are to seriously consider putting her in office.

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Comments (5)

"single-issue candidate"

This seems to be the go-to criticism of McKim. But no one ever elaborates beyond this: what are the issues that he is talking about & she is not? If McKim's is a "one issue campaign" then is his a "zero issue" one?

Also, I kept waiting for the author to elaborate what the "problem" was. It never happened. He listed what other things that McDonnell has done, but never made the case that McKim would not do them either (in fact this very paper has another article that indicates her support of many if not all his other efforts).

Mark Manvillemore than 2 years ago

Karen McKim's response to this

I didn't know anything about race, so before I voted early, I googled and found this. First I thank you for writing about this race, there is very little info out there. However, I don't know why Isthmus chose to use space to print an article complaining that one candidate appears to be talking only about one issue, instead of just doing what they always have done so well, inviting the candidates to respond to a series of questions and then printing those answers. I kept waiting for that to happen this year & it never did, oh well. So all we have is this, and frankly it isn't really journalism, it's essentially an opinion, and a very one-sided one.

So after reading this I searched more, and actually came upon Ms. McKim's direct response to this article, posted in the Isthmus forum. For anyone interested enough in this race to read this article, you will also want to read Karen's response:

http://forum.isthmus.com/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=63141

In case for some reason Isthmus won't allow me to post a link to their own discussion forum, just google on this : "Isthmus Who are you voting for in the County Clerk election?"

Mark Manvillemore than 2 years ago

Karen McKim for Dane County Clerk

You have not heard Karen McKim's message if you really think this article has any validity at all. I am sure the friend of Scott McDonald, who wrote this very biased and uniformed piece of garbage, can keep their good standing with the established democrats in Dane county who are not interested in voting on Merit, but only in voting by party. Many blind democrats who are just waiting to see the (D) before a name, would often not look to find the Evil in (D)evil.

John Stanleymore than 2 years ago

Single most important issue

Seriously? Haven’t you read the news lately? Even Homeland Security is making noises about needing better election protection. Dane County has the ability to verify election results but isn’t doing it? Well, that’s my single issue, and I’m glad McKim is willing to get it done.

Kendramore than 2 years ago

Finally!

I love it that a candidate is finally making an issue of the voting machines! I go through a lot of work to vote, and I want a county clerk who will make sure my vote is counted. I know some people who don’t even bother to register because they don’t believe their vote will count. If we get a county clerk who checks to make sure, I’ll bet I can get them to register and vote. Election officials should do their work and make sure people know their votes will be counted!

Jennifer Berendsmore than 2 years ago

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